Cherished Moments—OneShots
by feathercloud13
Summary: A collection of one-shots that just came to mind. They're a variety of one-shots that include romance, friendship, adventure, crack pairings, canon pairings. PM or review if you have requests. T for room.
1. Until Now

**Hey, everyone. I've had a lot of 'little moments' come to mind, and I decided to start a collection of one-shots.**

**I know that a lot of you out there agree that Thornclaw needs a she-cat. I have mixed feelings about this. In the Warriors books, most cats have mates, and it's kind of cliche now. But Thornclaw stands out because he's one of ThunderClan's favorite/important warriors, and yet he's just a one-cat show. I hope you enjoy.**

**_Disclaimer: I do not own _Warriors. **

I rise to my paws, giving my pelt golden-brown dappled fur a good shake, and look around the camp. I see Squirrelflight and Foxpaw slipping out of camp, maybe to battle train. Ferncloud and Dustpelt are sharing tongues right outside the nursery, their kits tumbling around them as they play. Sorreltail and Brackenfur are sharing a meal together near the fresh-kill pile. I feel a small twinge of envy for my brother. He has a beautiful she-cat for a mate, and a litter of kits to prove their love. Nearly all the cats in ThunderClan have mates, but I'm alone. My sister, Cinderpelt, is dead, and my brother and I don't speak to each other often. He's always busy with Sorreltail, and his kits. And my other kin, Brightheart, spends most of her time with Cloudtail.

I, personally, never felt love for any she-cat in my life before. Until now.

Looking around the camp, I see a small gray and white she-cat emerge from the warriors den. She blinks those pretty blue eyes of hers, then looks around. I catch her eye and nod to her in greeting.

"Good morning, Thornclaw," she mews as she began to make her way toward me. "How are you?"

My tail curls in delight, but I try to hide my emotions. "I'm doing fine, thanks," I reply, nodding again.

She purrs, and I can't help but admire that soft, melodious voice of hers. As she glances around, she asks me, "Have any patrols gone out yet?"

"Dawn patrol just left," I inform her, flicking my tail. It brushes only a whisker-width from her shoulder, and I glance down at her before continuing, "I'm leading the hunting patrol. Would you come with me?"

To my delight, the pretty she-cat replies, "Of course. Who else will be coming?"

I think for a moment. Brambleclaw told me to lead the hunting patrol, and he'd asked someone to come with me. Right. "Birchfall," I answer. "He should be up soon."

As if on cue, the tom emerges from the warriors den, stretching his forelegs. He blinks up at us, then meows to me, "Are we going hunting?"

I nod in reply. "Hazeltail is coming with us."

Birchfall shrugs. "All right. Could I go check on Whitewing for a moment? I usually go visit her in the mornings."

"Well, you should've woken up early," I say, trying to keep my patience as my eyes narrow. "We should really get going."

"Oh, come on, Thornclaw, it's Greenleaf, there's plenty of prey," Hazeltail coaxes. "Let him go."

I glance over at her. I can't say no to _her_. Turning to Birchfall, I tell him, "Okay, go ahead. But hurry back."

"Sure thing," Birchfall replies as he turns and lopes toward the nursery. His mate, Whitewing, is swollen with kits. I'd worry if I had a pretty she-cat carrying my kits, too.

I look over at Hazeltail, and can't help but feel drawn to her. I glance away quickly, my heartbeat quickening. _I'm old enough to be her father! _I remind myself, shaking my head.

"Are you okay, Thornclaw?"

Hearing her say my name makes my heart swell. "I'm fine," I reply hastily, curling my tail around my paws.

Before she can reply, though, Birchfall races over. His hackles are raised in alarm. "I'm sorry, Thornclaw. But could you go on without me?"

"What's the matter?" I ask. I hope Whitewing's all right. "Did something happen to your mate?"

He shakes his head and explains, "Whitewing's fine, she just has severe stomach cramps." His eyes are wide as he mews, "What if she has her kits while I'm gone? I don't want to leave her."

Hazeltail's eyes are soft as she mews, "Oh, I hope she feels better. Thornclaw and I can manage, right?" She looks up at me, and her clear blue eyes hypnotize me for a second.

"Um, yeah, go ahead, Birchfall," I stammer, shaking my pelt. "Come on, Hazeltail. Let's go."

"Thank you," Birchfall mews, dipping his head. Then he dashes back toward the nursery, his tail fluffed out in alarm.

As we pad out into the forest, I mutter, "In my opinion, I think he's just overreacting."

Hazeltail chuckles. "Maybe, but it seems so sweet that he cares that much about his mate."

I shrug casually, but I take her words to heart. If I'm ever in a situation like that…

"I smell mouse," Hazeltail whispers, dropping into a hunter's crouch. She stalks forward slowly and silently, an air of grace about her. I drop down, too, and watch her.

The mouse is nibbling at some sort of seed, and is oblivious to the beautiful she-cat approaching. But at the last moment, it squeaks and begins to dart away. With a surprising burst of speed, Hazeltail shoots forward and snags the prey with her claws.

I'm awed.

"Great catch, Hazeltail!" I exclaim, coming out of hiding in the bushes. I can't help but flick my tail across her shoulder in affection.

"Thanks," she mewed quietly, purring in satisfaction.

_Now it's my turn to show off my hunting skills. I hope she'll be impressed. _

***

I return with a squirrel and two voles in my jaws. Hazeltail has caught a sparrow.

"I think that's enough hunting for today," I say. "Good job, Hazeltail, you did well." As a senior warrior, I feel the need to commend the younger she-cat.

"Thank you, Thornclaw," she replies with respect.

I flick my tail over her shoulder and nudge her playfully with my muzzle. She blinks up at me in surprise, then laughs and paws at me with her small, gray and white paws.

"Hey," I growl playfully as I push her down to the ground.

She struggles underneath me, kicking with her hindlegs. "No fair!" she squeals as she writhes in my grasp.

After teasing her, I get off, allowing her to get back up. "Are you all right?" I ask, nudging her.

"No," she hisses tartly.

I flinch at her bitter tone. "Look, Hazeltail, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"

She laughs at me, and I feel hurt, until she meows, "I'm just playing, Thornclaw." She reaches up to give me a lick on the muzzle.

I blink in surprise and look down at her, my head tilted to the side. "H-Hazeltail?"

I suppose she took _herself _by surprise, too, because her pelt is flushed with heat. "Let's go back to camp," she says hastily, picking up the fresh-kill in her mouth.

I nod and pick up the rest, then gesture for her to go on in front of me.

On the way back, my eyes are glued to her back, and I'm deep in thought. As we enter camp, a smile stretches across my face, and I bound forward to walk beside her.

**So, what did you think? Let me know please. You can make requests if you'd like.**

**By the way, I was meaning to title this chapter, but i can't think of anything good besides for really unoriginal things like, "Thornclaw's Hunt." Any ideas?**


	2. All is Not Lost

Two: All is Not Lost

Swiftpaw shook his head fiercely and growled at me. His amber eyes were narrowed as he meowed, "It's not fair that Bluestar gave only Cloudtail his warrior name." He looked around at us, then nodded to my brother, Thornpaw, and me. "The three of us _deserve _to be warriors!"

I cringed at the snarl in his voice. But I knew he wasn't angry at me, he was angry at Bluestar, Fireheart, and Cloudtail. Swiftpaw had always been a friend of mine, and I'd come to admire him very much. Glancing over at my brother, I saw that he was nodding in agreement.

"We do deserve our warrior names," Thornpaw meowed evenly. "But what can we do? It's Bluestar's decision."

I flicked my tail over my brother's shoulder and nodded to show that I agreed with him. I was sure Bluestar would give us our warrior names soon.

"There is something we can do," Swiftpaw argued, his black and white fur bristling slightly. "We can _prove _that we're good enough to be warriors!"

Thornpaw narrowed his eyes and began to shook his head.

I, on the other hand, admired how dedicated Swiftpaw was, and blurted out, "How?"

Swiftpaw's light amber eyes gleamed, and he turned his attention to me. "If we find out what's stealing our prey at Snakerocks, then Bluestar will be sure to reward us with our warrior names!"

My eyes grew wide. "Snakerocks? B-but…"

"Don't be a coward," Swiftpaw hissed, his tail lashing in frustration. "We can go find out what's stealing ThunderClan's prey. Maybe we can even drive them off!" His eyes lit up, and his voice softened as he tried to persuade me. "Come on, Brightpaw. Bluestar will be so impressed, and we'll show Cloudtail! We'll be honored! Everyone in the Clan will respect us."

I hesitated and cast my eyes downward, remembering Cloudtail's warrior-naming ceremony. He'd been awarded for fighting bravely in the battle against RiverClan.

"_Cloudtail! Cloudtail! Cloudtail!" _

_I called out along with the rest of ThunderClan, but I couldn't help but feel a bit left out. After all, Thornpaw and I had been training for quite a while. Besides, Swiftpaw had been present at the battle as well. _

Finally, I mewed quietly, "I don't know, Swiftpaw. We can't leave camp alone. Besides, we could get hurt."

He repeated, "Don't be a coward, Brightpaw." With a sigh, he laid his tail on my shoulder, and I suppressed a purr. "Don't worry, I'll be with you."

I glanced up at Thornpaw. My brother, his eyes smoldering, shook his head at me. Softly, I replied, "No, Swiftpaw."

The white and black tom turned away from me. "Fine. I'll go by myself."

"No!" I said sharply, my eyes widening in alarm. "Swiftpaw, you'll get hurt."

"I won't," Swiftpaw growled stubbornly. "If you don't come with me, I'll go alone." Glancing at me, he added, "Don't you _dare _tell anyone."

I winced at his tone. "I won't," I promised.

Thornpaw let out a sigh, but he said nothing to me. Instead, he turned and headed toward the apprentices den.

***

_Dogs! _At first, Swiftpaw and I fought against one dog. Though it was difficult, we managed. But our confidence instantly diminished when six more dogs, four times the size of myself, appeared before us.

All I heard was, "Run!" from Swiftpaw. Not knowing what to do, I watched as Swiftpaw ran toward the nearest tree. The dogs barked ferociously and started after him, trampling over me in the process.

I let out a wail and struggled. I felt blood dripping down my face, and my eyesight was dimming. The last thing I saw was Swiftpaw being pulled down from a tree he'd successfully climbed. The last thing I heard were the baying of the dogs and a horrendous yowl of pain from Swiftpaw.

***

I blinked, glancing around my surroundings. Pain shot through me, and I could only see from one eye. I soon realized that I was in Cinderpelt's den. As soon as I left out a soft mew, my sister was at my side.

"Brightpaw," she meowed, setting her bad leg down beside her. Her voice sounded raw and pained. Though we weren't from the same litter, she and I were close sisters.

I struggled to get up, but she gently forced me back down. "Wh-what happened? Where's Swiftpaw?"

Cinderpelt blinked her eyes, then glanced away. "I'm sorry, Brightpaw. The dogs…"

***

_Lostface. _

That was my new name. Lostface.

Swiftpaw had been wrong. I wasn't honored for my bravery at all! Instead, I was punished.

"What? That's unfair!" Thornpaw snarled, his hackles raising as he stood up defiantly. "Brightpaw deserves a _real _warrior name! Lostface is a cruel name!"

His mentor, Mousefur, hissed for him to hush, but my brother didn't relent.

Bluestar glared down at him, her tail lashing.

***

At first, I blamed Cloudtail. If he hadn't received his warrior name first, then Swiftpaw wouldn't have felt the need to prove himself.

But I became closer to him. My young crush on Swiftpaw left me, and I began to see the white-furred tom with a new light.

Though I had only one eye, a torn ear, and a scar on my face, Cloudtail was always kind to me. Only when others were present did he call me by my given name, Lostface. When we were alone, he called me by the name, Brightheart.

"It's because, no matter what you look like outside, you have a beautiful, bright heart inside," he once told me.

Not only were we friends, but he was almost like a second mentor to me. Whitestorm had taught me all I needed to know to be a warrior, but Cloudtail taught me to cope with my one eye. In a short period of time, I'd learned to fight with my one good eye.

That was my story.

**What did you think?**

**I hope you liked it! :) I made up a few things because the Erins didn't exactly let us see things from certain viewpoints. But I kept the factual information factual...**


	3. Odd

**Yes, it has been quite a while since I've updated anything. Sorry! **

**Here's something that I've had written down for a while. Enjoy! :)**

* * *

Horror.

That was the single emotion that initially shot up her spine, causing her jaw to slacken and the rest of her body to go stiff. Her legs were rigid, and her amber eyes were wide open, yet she didn't see anything else but the tom that stood in front of her. Everything else was a blur, a strange vision of some sort. Every single hair on her brown, tabby pelt was standing on end, making her look much larger. She stared at the one she loved in horror. How his words stunned her. They were a blow to her heart.

Then came the disbelief, and the dismay.

It was unbelievable. How could he say this? How could he behave like this? Didn't he love her? Her eyes glistened with those newfound emotions. And she knew, she _knew _for a fact that he saw them shining in her deep, amber orbs. And yet, he still bared his teeth at her, curling his lips, and snarled menacingly, a cold look in his eyes. Then he curled around Nightcloud and Breezepelt just a little tighter.

Jealousy flooded her senses next. Betrayal, too.

Nightcloud and Breezepelt were bristling and hissing defensively, at her. But what made her the angriest was that _he_ was on their side. He looked at them comfortingly, to show them that he loved _them, _not _her. _Not _her _kits. And the three of them were staring at her three kits as if they were pieces of crowfood. She'd thought that Crowfeather hadn't forgotten her, just as she hadn't forgotten him, and what they'd shared… but… he _had_… or at least, he'd chosen to ignore it…

Then came the resignation.

She wanted to yowl and spit and even attack them. She could imagine herself, claws outstretched, snarling. But she knew she wouldn't stand a change against the agile WindClan warriors. And besides, _she _was in the wrong. It was _her _fault. It was forbidden, as a medicine cat, to have a mate, and it was forbidden to have kits, at that. She'd made her decision long ago, that night, when she'd returned to ThunderClan. Besides, it was only fair for Crowfeather to seek someone else.

Then came the pain. The regret. And everything else that tagged along.

Forcing herself to look away and to stay calm, she merely bowed her head once, hanging her head low and letting her tail drag in the ground. How could he? How could he reject his own kits, of his own blood, his own kin? How could he be so cruel, merciless, and selfish? But yet… how could she still have feelings for him?

She felt the misery.

She'd hurt so many cats. Firestar and Sandstorm, undoubtedly, were disappointed in both their daughters. Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw weren't on good terms, either, now. And her kits… they'd discovered everything, the webbed, tangled lies that surrounded them… and they were facing their father, whose face was plastered with disgust, denial, and anger. ThunderClan would never trust her to be their medicine cat anymore, not to mention what all the other cats in the forest would think of her. She'd lost the thing that she'd chosen over Crowfeather so long ago, _because _of Crowfeather. She'd chosen her duties as a medicine cat over her love for Crowfeather. Yet, because of that, she'd lost the privilege of being ThunderClan's medicine cat.

Despite everything, a strange noise, much like a purr, rumbled from her throat. It was odd how everything had turned out, wasn't it?

* * *

**Feedback please! :)**

**This was originally supposed to be in Hollyleaf's POV, depicting her emotions of when her father rejects them. But it worked out better this way. **


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